It’s 2020 and Tori is forced to move from her New York City apartment because her parents are divorcing. Tori totally blames her father, who is perpetually angry and withdrawn. She overhears a conversation between her father and a reporter, asking for a comment on the 40th anniversary of a crime involving her grandfather, which she knew nothing about. Tori immediately goes to the internet and finds an article describing her grandfather’s involvement in a jewel heist at the museum where he worked, for which he was subsequently jailed. As she continues to research, she discovers a picture of the large diamond that was stolen, which then transports her back to 1980, where she meets Bobby, her father who is fifteen. As they work together to try to prevent the crime, she learns that this Bobby is nothing like the sad, bitter person her father became.

The time travel premise of this young adult novel is good, although not totally original. I liked the dialogue and banter between Tori and her fifteen-year-old father. The book had some humorous moments, especially when Tori tells Bobby to “pause” the television show they were watching so she can use the bathroom. Bobby gets up and adjusts the one volume dial on the television. There were many instances when Tori gets stumped by the differences in technology between the two time periods. She constantly takes her cell phone out of her pocket, which is completely useless to her in 1980, and can’t figure out how to use the rotary phone.

The book was a little confusing in the beginning when it introduces some shady characters who are trying to get funding for a swimwear line. Their involvement in the story is not revealed until later. It also requires Bobby’s parents to suspend disbelief and accept why this strange girl just showed up in their apartment with no luggage and is unable to contact her parents. Bobby’s mother does have some suspicions, but she never follows up on them. Tori also makes some questionable decisions just to keep the story moving. She finds out that there is no Dr. Hopewell working at the museum but asks no more questions of either Bobby’s father or his brother.

In many ways, Stealing Time, read like a middle-grade novel. However, there were references, such as to a certain peanut farmer who ran the country, that most current middle-schoolers would not understand. The authors also used some words that I would bet most kids would have to look up, such as sozzled and semaphored. I also did not care for the way the book addressed someone with mental illness as Bobby tells Tori not to get to close to a “crazy” person because he talked to a trash can. Maybe the authors were trying to be authentic to the period, but there were better ways to convey that message.

All said, it’s a decent novel, just not my favorite. I have read other young adult novels I enjoyed more.

Thank you to NetGalley for providing an e-ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Fifteen-year-old Tori is furious at her parents for divorcing in the middle of the 2020 pandemic, forcing her to leave New York behind and move to Boston with her mother. She was especially angry at her father. They had never gotten along because he was always annoyed and bitter, and yelled at her.

When she overheard a conversation with him and a reporter, asking for his input on the 40th anniversary of something that involved her grandfather, she was appalled to discover his father had been arrested in March 1980 and jailed after a jewelry heist at the museum where he worked. When she came across a photo of the massive diamond that had been stolen, she was transported to 1980.

In 1980 she met her fifteen-year-old father Bobby, who was nothing like the angry, bitter dad she’d left behind in 2020. As Tori got to know her grandparents and Bobby, she realized the trajectory of their future was in her hands. A gang of thieves was going to steal the diamond and her grandfather would be blamed, but what would happen if she and Bobby could steal it first and hide it until the day after the real robbery? Could she save her grandfather and Bobby, while frantically trying to figure out how to get back to 2020?

I loved the many collisions with Tori trying to negotiate between 1980 and 2020. Her attempts at using a rotary phone and encyclopedia were hilarious, Bobby’s efforts to understand cell phones and the internet were equally funny, and the bumbling gang reminded me of the not-so-bright gangsters in old Bugs Bunny cartoons. However, when the dust settles, family love ties everything up into a bow.

“Stealing time” was so good I sat down and reread it as soon as I’d finished. Now THAT’s a good read!

Highly recommended for ages 15-18.

Loved this book! The storyline was entertaining from start to finish. I am a sucker for a time traveling story. And the ending couldn’t have been more perfect for me.

A teenaged girl named Tori Gold is about to leave her home in New York City at the beginning of the Pandemic in 2020 when she finds herself back in the same place in 1980. She is in the same apartment where she spent her entire life but her room now belongs to a teenaged boy named Bobby Gold. Bobby lives with his parents, Louise and Victor. Tori is shocked to realize that Bobby is her own father and Louise and Victor are her grandparents. The happy family living comfortably in 1980 is very different from the one she left behind forty years later. In Tori's life, Victor, the successful gemologist, died after being disgraced and imprisoned for his part in the theft of the Desert Sun, a legendary diamond on display at the Museum of Natural History. Louise is an invalid, still mourning the loss of her husband. Worst of all, Tori's father, Bob, has had an unhappy life of frustration and bitterrness and he is divorcing her mother. Tori and Bobby figure out that the only hope of returning Tori to her own time is to prevent the theft. This will be difficult because Tori's knowledge of the crime consists of part of an old newspaper article she read before leaving her own time.
Stealing Time is a delightful young adult novel that was thoroughly enjoyed by this old adult. The authors obviously had a wonderful time mining the comic possibilities of the situation without spoiling the poignance of the family relationships.
Tori and Bobby are both science fiction fans who understand the potential problems of time travel. They must be careful to avoid changing the future too much while using Tori's limited knowledge to fix the present. I had a lot of fun reading about the differences in technology as experienced by two kids from different eras. Tori feels lost without her cell phone in a world where telephones are connected to the wall by wires and there is no Internet. Bobby finds himself caring deeply about the fate of the girl who will become his daughter. While it did seem as if his parents were unusually accepting of the sudden arrival of his "friend from Camp Ramah" who has lost her luggage and needs a place to stay for the weekend, their kindness just made them very sympathetic and I was willing to suspend my disbelief. The alternate chapters dealt with the plans of the actual jewel thieves, one of whom turned out to be a surprise. While the book dealt with some serious issues and sketchy characters, it was clean and, I thought, appropriate, for any age.
Stealing Time reminded me a bit of another enjoyable YA time travel story, Lauren Thoman's I'll Stop the World, but this one was much better.
Stealing Time is (dare I say it?) a gem!

Rating 3/5

Tdlr: this is a fun time travel story where a teenager goes back in time to stop a heist.
Pacing is good, writing is decent. There are off handed remarks made by the main two characters that made me laugh out loud.

Cons: Tori, the MC takes some stupid decisions just for the sake of the plot. Like she talks about Dr Hopewell to Victor, Victor says he doesn't know and she doesn't ask a followup question? Really?

Long:

Tori goes back in time and takes forever to figure out that she has to stop a heist. Back when her dad was a teenager thinfs were very different, people were more accommodating. Will any family in 2024 accept a friend who shows up at your house and let her stay at your house for days? Not possible. There are a few quips made by the boy that are funny like "Hollywood had run out of ideas " and "EVs are new for you? A tech from 1800s?". It was a simpler time unpoisoned by fake news and propaganda. The boy finds it impossible to believe that school shootings are a thing for instance.

The ending is really good. Won't spoil it here.

I really enjoyed this book and its unique premise. Tori Gold is not having a good time at the start of the novel- her parents are divorcing, she has to move, and the pandemic has just shut down everything. Meanwhile, in 1980, her dad Bobby has no idea what’s about to happen to his family. Tori suddenly time travels to 1980 and teams up with the child version of her dad to stop the heist and save Bobby’s family- and herself- from misery. I loved this book and was hooked from the very beginning. Thank you to NetGalley for the e-ARC.

Love this book. Such a clever idea and I love how the main characters interact and then meet in the past

This is not for me. It is YA in its' writing style and stays true to its' genre. Tori is very unlikeable within the first few sentences, which is a turn-off.

Quite and interesting story! I liked how the main character time traveled back into time instead of to the future like most story's. She got to learn a lot more about herself and her father. Interesting character dynamics. Interesting plot line. Worth a read.

When Tori and her father fight over the pandemic and lockdown, she suddenly finds herself in 1980, trying to save herself from the fallout of the choices of her grandparents. The story is interesting because how would a teenager who has all the modern knowledge and conveniences feel if they were banished to a place where no smart object existed. How would they stop a thief from stealing a priceless treasure and ruining their family forever?

I read the description for this book and was immediately intrigued. I am not usually a YA reader and I think that’s why this missed the mark for me a little bit. It was a cute story and very well written but the COVID setting felt a bit “too soon” and overall the characters felt a little superficial. I would recommend it to young readers who like time travel and a bit of mystery.

This was definitely a middle school book and an interesting one at that. I tried to read it from a young teen’s point of view and as such, overlooked any depth missing from the characters and dialogue. The story is a basic take-off on “Back to the Future” with a young girl facing her parent’s breakup during the pandemic who finds herself sent back 40 years to interact with her father as a teen, himself. The story is predictable and if you really took the time to think about the whole concept of what changes in the future when the past is changed, it would make your head hurt. I would recommend this as a fun read for the young teen set, but over 15??? Probably not.

I love time travel and the 80’s, so as soon as saw this book I knew I had to try it. What a fun, original read! I loved the whole idea of a daughter meeting her dad when he was a teenager, and working together to stop a major crime of the decade. The daughter’s opportunity to see her dad as a “real person” and not only as her parent was wonderful. Absolutely love this book and will recommend it to everyone.

Thanks so much for the opportunity to read!